Retired Military Leaders Say Stop Fear-Mongering, Close Guantanamo to Ensure National Security

Dozens of retired military leaders praise prosecution of Guantanamo detainees in U.S. Federal Courts

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(Washington, DC – November 18, 2009) Dozens of distinguished retired military leaders today urged Congress to stay the course toward closure of the U.S. detention facility at Guantánamo Bay and to see past the fear-mongering tactics designed to delay the Administration's efforts to close the facility and bring those held there to justice. These retired military leaders issued their call to Congress on the same day that Attorney General Eric Holder appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee to discuss the Department of Justice's commitment to keeping Americans safe.

The letter and today's hearing come just days after Attorney General Holder announced the U.S. will move the trials of the five Guantanamo detainees accused in the 9/11 conspiracy from the discredited Guantanamo military commissions and into federal courts, which have an impressive track record in trying complex terrorism cases. It also comes just one day after the Senate blocked an amendment to restrict the Administration's ability to move detainees into the United States for prosecution.

"We have watched with disappointment efforts to engender fear among the American people about the prospect of bringing suspected terrorists to the United States for trial," wrote the 32 retired military leaders in an open letter to Congress. "Our federal justice system has a proven track record of successfully prosecuting terrorists and incarcerating them safely in our prisons."

The retired military leaders are among those who stood with President Obama in the Oval Office as he signed Executive Orders ending the use of torture and ordering the closure of the Guantánamo detention facility. The group stated that many al Qaeda terrorists are already serving long sentences in federal prisons and pointed to a recent American Correctional Association resolution assuring the American public that they "would be safe from harm and free from danger should any detainees be transferred to a facility or facilities within the United States." They also noted that U.S. prisons currently house more than 150 convicted terrorists and none has ever escaped.

"The American people can have confidence that our judicial and penal institutions are strong and that our military, law enforcement and corrections professionals are second to none. Closing the Guantanamo prison facility will make Americans more secure, both on our own soil and on the battlefields where our service members fight valiantly on our behalf," the letter stated. "We urge you to do all you can to ensure that Guantanamo is closed promptly by sending detainees to their home countries or other nations willing to accept them, and by bringing those who have committed crimes against the United States here to face justice."

In a recent study of 119 terrorism cases with 289 defendants and filed since 2001 in the normal federal court system, Human Rights First found that of the 214 defendants whose cases were resolved as of June 2, 2009, 195 were convicted either by verdict or by a guilty plea. By contrast, the military commissions are a failed system that has secured only 3 convictions and their continued use threatens to perpetuate the legacy of failed trial and detention policies at Guantanamo.
Beyond the legal and ethical reasoning outlined in today's letter, the military leaders stated that closing Guantanamo will ultimately protect American soldiers serving overseas. "Continued detention of prisoners at Guantanamo provides our enemies with a powerful propaganda weapon which they are using to recruit forces against us, undermining vital counterinsurgency efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq and impairing our ability to secure the goodwill of people in the Middle East and our allies around the world whose cooperation is necessary for the achievement of our military goals. Serving U.S. flag-rank officers have maintained that, because of its effectiveness in recruiting insurgent fighters into combat, Guantanamo is a key contributing factor to U.S. combat deaths in Iraq. Depriving the enemy of this weapon is important for our own security interests and will do much to demonstrate that the United States values adherence to the rule of law and humane treatment of enemy prisoners in our custody," they wrote.

Today's letter to Congress marks the latest step in a long campaign for these military leaders, who have spent years engaged in the effort to end the use of torture, close Guantanamo and bring those held there to justice in federal courts. In recent months, these retired military leaders have met with administration officials and participated in a series of events, including panels in Washington, DC, Florida and Michigan. This coming Thursday, they will host a discussion at William & Mary School of Law in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Read the letter and list of signatories.

Read more about the retired military leaders' work.

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